Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1887-12-08
THEFTS At FUNERALS.

THEFTS AT FUNERALS.
Women Who Attend the House or che
Dead for tho Purpose Of stealing.
mo. madam. You can not enter. -
said the usher gently, but firmly.
1.-The funeral is strictly private, and
no one without card is to be ad-
mitted."
.'She was a dear friend of mine, :"
said the woman, and a dainty white
handkerchief with broad band OF
black was slowly raised to wipe away
the dewy mist that obscured her sight.
''Can l not see her once more?" There
was 3 deep pathos in tone and a
plaintive sob came from behind the
linen, while tear-drop slowly coursed
down her pale cheek.
The heart of the usher softened. He
was only young man, and she looked
almost charming in her apparent dis
tress, so he allowed her to enter. Tip
toeing softly into the parlor where no
one but an aged lady was sitting. she
bent over the open casket as if to take
one long, last look at the departed
Then, while convulsive sObs shook her
form. she moved few PAGES and
leaned against the mantel, upon which
was placed a large amount Of valuable
bric-a-brac. Here she remained for
a moment with look of sadness upon
her countenance BETTING the occasion.
while her lips trembled with suppressed
grief. The old lady was intently
studying the pattern of the carpet, and
when the visitor left the room with
lowered head made no note of her de-
parture. Once outside and away from
the house her steps quickened. and ten
minutes later valuable piece of
bisque was handed over a pawnbroker' S
counter, while the clerk slowly count
ed out the requisite change.
When the funeral was over and the
family once more alone. the loss was
discovered only to be charged against
some one of the servants, or, perhaps,
kept secret through fear of offending
some of those present by searching
inquiry.
Funeral sneak-thieves are becoming
more and more numerous" said a
well-known private detective. "They
are always females, as the heavy
drapery of their clothing affords ample
opportunity for concealing small
articles. They scan the daily papers
closely, note the principal deaths, and
when the time arrives play off the
'dear-friend' racket to perfection. AS
they are generally quite pretty, and
the beauty they naturally possess is
considerably enhanced by the somber-
ness of their attire. they succeed in
nine cases out of ten in securing. adj
mission. no matter how private the
funeral services may be. Once inside
they cry little if necessary, and
watch their chance of stealing any
thing of value in the room. Having
succeeded. they make their departure
as quickly yet decorously as possible.
and without tarrying a minute for fear
of possible detection and pursuit, pawn
the stolen article.
when the room is full of people
the sneak-thief proceeds very cautious
~. often waiting until the prayer is
being made before endeavoring to Sc
cure any thing. None of those present
pay any attention to her actions, think
ing that she is a friend of the bereaved
family. In some cases articles which
are missed from upper rooms have
been taken by these women.
IAN uptown lady recently placed
a valuable ring upon the finger of her
dead daughter, only to find when she
looked at her before the lid was
screwed down that it was gone. In
this instance suspicion Immediately at
tached to woman whom no one
present knew. but who had been
noticed bending over the casket few
minutes before. She was called into
another room, and when accused of
the theft calmly handed over the ring.
In order to avoid a scene she was
allowed to 60. In other cases, how
ever, these vampires have succeeded in
removing jewelry from the dead and
escaping with t-"-PhiladeLphia In
qairer.